


my waves meet your shore (ever and evermore)

by Hiyorism



Category: Our Life: Beginnings & Always (Visual Novel)
Genre: Direct Love, Established Relationship, Fluff, Gender Neutral MC - Freeform, MC is named Jamie but the name isn't used often so you could easily insert your MC's name instead, Other, POV Second Person, Post-Step 3 Pre-Step 4, Summer, Summer Vacation, This is a love letter to the beach and also to Cove Holden, This whole thing is just sickeningly sweet tbh, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, Warm/Sporty
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-12
Updated: 2021-01-12
Packaged: 2021-03-12 22:22:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,503
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28517838
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Hiyorism/pseuds/Hiyorism
Summary: “Am I dreaming?” He muttered into the top of your head and squeezed you even tighter.You laughed, carefree. “I hope you aren’t dreaming. I’ve been looking forward to seeing you for far too long.”--You've just returned home from university for the summer, and there's someone you’ve been dying to see.
Relationships: Cove Holden/Main Character | Jamie Last (Our Life), Cove Holden/Reader
Comments: 21
Kudos: 76





	my waves meet your shore (ever and evermore)

The distant sounds of crashing waves and seagull cries were the first things to welcome you home to Sunset Bird as you climbed out of the taxi. Your legs ached from the long, cramped ride, but the moment you laid your eyes on the glittering sea on the horizon anything other than pure elation faded away. A grin spread out across your face as you bounced lightly on your feet. 

  
“Ahem.” The driver cleared his throat pointedly. 

  
“Oh!” You quickly turned back to face him, apologetic. A few moments passed as you fumbled through your bag for your wallet. You finally pulled out a few assorted bills and handed them to him.

  
“Thanks, kid.” He nodded his head towards you once. “Make sure you’ve got everything.”

  
“Yep! All accounted for.” You proudly held up your two overnight bags. Most would think you’d only be staying the weekend, rather than the entire summer break, with such a small amount of luggage. They’d be foolish to worry, however. Most of everything you’d need still resided in your childhood home. 

  
You thanked the driver, and he nodded his head once more to you before wordlessly driving off. Your eyes came to rest on your family’s front door. Another grin crept up on you, and this time you couldn’t contain the near-maniacal giggle that escaped from your chest. Oh, what would the neighbors think?

  
“Jamie?”

  
Speak of the devil. You turned around, grinning even wider at the sound of Cliff Holden’s voice. “Hey, Mr. Holden!”

  
His eyes widened as you crossed the street towards him. “Huh, so it really is you.” You stopped in front of him, smiling so hard you thought your cheeks might burst. He cracked a smile of his own, his brow wrinkled in slight worry and confusion. “I swear your moms said you’d be home tomorrow, though. I hope I didn’t get the dates mixed up.” 

  
“Nope!” You swung each bag over each shoulder to balance your weight. “I was supposed to arrive tomorrow, but some stuff happened and I realized I could get here a day early. I wanted to surprise everyone.” You said the last part with a conspiratorial laugh.

  
“Ah, of course.” The wrinkles between his brows smoothed out, and his easy-going smile was on full display now. “Has university been treating you-“ His gaze followed your longing eyes to the ocean. He chuckled a bit, seemingly to himself, and crossed his arms. “Never mind, we can catch up at the dinner tomorrow. You must be missing the beach, huh?”

  
You sheepishly looked back to him. “Sorry, it just feels like it’s been forever since I last saw it.”

  
“Well, get on out there already. Your moms left just a bit ago to get stuff for tomorrow, so you should have some time to kill.”

  
You sighed, content just at the thought. But you shook your head. “No, I-“

  
“Cove should still be out there.”

  
His name alone made your lips crack open into another wide grin. “Say no more, Mr. Holden!” You didn’t waste a second. You turned and ran back to your house, dumped your bags on the doorstep, and took off in the direction of the beach.

  
Mr. Holden laughed heartily, and raised a hand in a wave. “Have fun, kiddo!”

  
You waved back quickly, mind now totally preoccupied by imagining how Cove would react. He was definitely going to cry, you decided.

  
Your feet hit the pavement, hard and fast, carrying you down the ever familiar road. The salty air settled on your lips, and the warm sun kissed your skin. The seagull cries became louder the closer you got, as did the heavy crashing of the waves. You felt it all so intimately. How could you have taken this for granted as a child? You felt so connected to it all, as if you had sea foam running through your veins rather than blood.

  
It wasn’t long before you found yourself at the edge of the beach. You eagerly kicked off your shoes and stepped off the pavement. The bright, warm sand clung to your feet and you were hit by a wave of nostalgia. How many times had you and your friends crossed this very threshold without a single thought given to it? No matter, you would appreciate it all the more now. You watched the waves roll in, thunderous and still too far for your liking. As you made your way closer to the water your eyes scanned the beach for that familiar head of green hair.

  
A little further down the beach, you spotted your boyfriend. Cove. He was sitting in the sand, face turned towards the sea. The tide came in just up to where his feet were stretched out, and the wind gently caressed his hair. Much in the same way you would like to, you idly thought. Watching him like this, it wouldn’t be too hard to convince yourself he was some otherworldly being, a spirit of the sea, or perhaps even a merman who traded in his scales for a pair of legs. Had you not grown up with him, anyways. You allowed yourself a few more moments to drink in the sight of him and the sea. Your impatience to speak to him, to hold and love him, ultimately won out however. 

  
Your heart pounded in time with your footsteps as you made your way to him. You had missed him so much.

  
“Cove!” Despite wanting to surprise him, you found yourself shouting his name into the wind.

  
His head whipped around, causing strands of his hair to momentarily obscure his face. When you did get to see his eyes, they were wide and disbelieving. 

  
“Jamie?” He quickly stood and started to make his way towards you, but he lost his balance as one of his feet sunk deep in the sand. You gasped as he fell forward, narrowly catching himself just before his face met the ground.

  
“Oh my god, are you alright?” You had closed the gap between the two of you just as he stood up. He made no effort to reply, instead choosing to open his arms and crush you to his bare chest. The grains of sand that clung to his hands dug into your skin through your shirt, but you couldn’t find the will to care as you melted into his embrace. Wrapping your arms around him, you felt the ache of loneliness you’d become all too familiar with melt away as you breathed in his scent. 

  
“Am I dreaming?” He muttered into the top of your head and squeezed you even tighter.

  
You laughed, carefree. “I hope you aren’t dreaming. I’ve been looking forward to seeing you for far too long.”

  
Another squeeze and he loosened his hold on you enough to look at your face. His eyes gazed into yours, questioning. “What day is it? I thought for sure-“ He sounded a bit panicky, so you cut him off.

  
“I figured out a way to come home a day earlier. I wanted to surprise everyone. That’s why I didn’t tell you.” You gently cupped his face and, with a soft smile, wiped away the tears that were beginning to form in his eyes. “I knew you were gonna cry…”

  
He swallowed hard and intertwined one of your hands with his. “I missed you,” he murmured, raising your linked hands to press against his heart, “You have no idea how much.”

  
“Mm, I think I have some idea. I missed you too.” You pressed his hand against your lips, embedding your words into his skin. Perhaps this exchange would look melodramatic to an outsider, but you knew he meant every word just as much as you did. 

  
One more year to go, you reminded yourself. Once you graduated, you could come back home. For good, then. You hadn’t decided if you would continue living with your moms or move into Cove’s apartment, but you still had time to make that decision. There was so much to discuss in the meantime.

  
Cove pressed his forehead against yours, interrupting your thoughts. You hummed happily, content to just be near him again. His thumb idly stroked your hand as the tide gently washed over your feet, leaving remnants of foam behind. You couldn’t imagine anywhere you’d rather be in this moment.

  
“I love you, Cove.” You whispered, unsure if he’d even hear you over the waves.

  
His pretty blush confirmed that he had heard it, however. You laughed softly at the sight. He lifted his eyes to yours, the happy embarrassment clearly written out on his face.   
“I,” he brought his lips to your cheek, placing a small kiss there, “love,” another kiss, this one bestowed upon your forehead, “you,” a third kiss, lightly granted to the tip of your nose, made you giggle, “too.” And last but certainly not least, a fourth kiss. 

  
His mouth pressed gently against your smiling lips. Your hands remained intertwined, and he brought his free hand to cradle your face. You rested your free hand upon his wrist, stroking it lightly throughout the kiss. He tasted familiarly of salt and the sea, and you absently wondered what he might taste of you, after being landlocked for what seemed an unending amount of time.

  
The kiss ended all too soon, but you could hardly complain about the view. Cove still sported that bashful blush across his cheeks, now even brighter, and a look in his eyes that you could only describe as deliriously happy. You could only assume you had a similar look on your face.

  
“Hi.” Cove squeezed your hand again, his voice soft.

  
“Hi, Cove.” If there were words to describe how happy this man made you, you weren’t aware of them.

  
“So,” Cove cleared his throat and walked you both just out of reach of the tide, “how has school been?” Cove sat cross-legged on the dry sand, and you followed suit, facing him.

  
You hummed lightly as you looked up at the clear, blue sky. “It’s been alright. Exams have been kicking my ass lately, but you knew that already.” The spring finals had taken no small amount of time away from you and Cove this year. You hated it, but you knew a few weeks of shorter conversations was more bearable than potentially having to take an extra semester. 

  
“I’m sure you’re doing just fine.” Cove tapped his thumb against your hand. “I’m proud of you, you know. You’ve worked so hard towards your goal, and you haven’t hesitated to see it through. You’re incredible.” Pure adoration shone on his face when you looked at him. 

  
Love bubbled up in your chest and formed a knot in your throat. Feeling your face heat up, you let your forehead fall against his shoulder, effectively hiding your face from your beloved. 

  
“I’m doing it for us.” You muttered.

  
His hand came up to stroke your hair. “I know,” you could hear the happiness in his voice. “but as long as you’re happy, we’ll be okay.”

  
He really needed to stop before your heart gave out. For someone so easily embarrassed, he could say the cheesiest things. You couldn’t find it in you to mind, however. He was perfectly himself, and you loved every inch of him. Even so, you had to set the record straight.

  
Moving slightly, you kissed the spot of his shoulder where your forehead had rested. A noticeable shiver ran across his skin as you straightened your back and fixed him with what you hoped was a no-nonsense look.

  
“Cove,” you started with a sigh, “our future isn’t just about me. You need to be happy too. There’s no way I can be content with a future where we prioritize me over you.”

  
All you found in his sea glass-like eyes was pure tenderness, enough to wash you out to sea. As if defying your serious tone, his lips spread into a soft smile. “Then it’s a good thing I have you,” he breezily replied, “I couldn’t ever be unhappy with you by my side. You’re all I need.”

  
A beat passed, then two, then three. You burst into laughter, quickly turning your burning cheeks away from him. When you turned back to face him again, he was widely grinning at you.

  
“God, Cove. Gross.” He laughed this time. It was music to your ears, carried away by the wind. “No, seriously,” you continued, your lips twitching, laughter threatening to spill out of your chest again. “If I had heard anyone else say that, I would have thrown up immediately.”

  
“Mm,” he pressed his forehead against yours lovingly, “guess it’s a good thing I was the one that said it, then.”

  
“Mm… I hate you.”

  
He pulled you into his tight embrace, one hand tangling itself in your hair. “And I love you.”

  
You relented all too kindly, you knew, but you couldn’t resist combing your own hand through the hair that rested at his nape. “I love you too.” You pressed the words against his neck. 

  
The both of you remained locked in this embrace for a bit longer, neither quite willing to be the first to break it. His thumb idly run circles just below your nape, and your fingers gently smoothed out his wind-tousled tangles. There was no need for words as you basked in the miraculous existence of each other. Eventually, as the sun began to descend noticeably lower in the sky, Cove was the first to break the silence. 

  
“We’re all covered in sand, y’know.”

  
“Mhm.” You hummed happily in response against his chest.

  
“Your moms are gonna be pretty annoyed with us.”

  
“Oh.” You hadn’t taken that into consideration before plopping down on the sand with Cove. You were pretty much covered in it now.

  
Silent, he untangled himself from you and moved his body into a crouch, his back facing you. Without missing a beat, you hooked your arms around his neck and wrapped your legs around him. He stood with a slight grunt and hoisted you up a bit higher. With that, you both began the trek back to the neighborhood.

  
“We can clean up at Dad’s before heading to your Moms’ place, if that’s alright with you.” His steady gait across the sand comforted you in mysterious ways. You pressed a kiss to his cheek before resting your chin against his shoulder.

  
“Mm, sounds good to me…” You murmured, eyes beginning to drift close.

  
“I’m glad you came home, Jamie.” There was a quiet relief in his voice with that sentence. You figured you’d probably have to address the fears behind it. Later, though. 

  
“Nothing in this world could keep me away, Cove.” You couldn’t be certain he heard your whisper, but no matter. You’d spend the rest of your lives proving it to him. For now, the steady strength in the arms that held you up, and the silent trust in an inevitable homecoming would be enough.

  
Like waves to the shore.

**Author's Note:**

> So, this is my very first attempt at writing a gender neutral/ambiguous character, and in second person, at that!  
> Do let me know if you thought it felt natural, or of any potential improvements I should think of making.  
> For constructive criticism outside of the topic of gender identity, please keep it to yourself. I do this for free and I'm sensitive.  
> You can follow me on Tumblr @Hiyorism. I don't post Our Life (yet, anyways), I'm a lesbian and #I Just Think He (Cove Holden) Is Neat.  
> Title is from Taylor Swift's song, "Long Story Short."


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